The Worst Celebrity Makeup Fails In Red Carpet History
Before celebrities hit the red carpet, they sit for at least two hours in the makeup chair. With that much time and money spent with professionals, you would think that their makeup would look stellar. Nope! Plenty of makeup artists have messed up, from leaving chalky powder all over an actress's face to making a rock star look like he has pink eye. Check out the worst makeup fails in red carpet history!
The Definition Of "Raccoon Eye"
When Avril Lavigne used to wear heavy eyeliner, people joked that she had "raccoon eyes." But Lavigne had nothing on singer-songwriter Taylor Momsen. She went overboard with this 2010 red carpet look.
Eyeliner and eyeshadow are supposed to accentuate the eye, not consume it. You can't even see her eyelids with that much black. Momsen has gorgeous blue eyes, but they are entirely obscured by makeup. That's the opposite of what makeup is supposed to do!
How Did She Turn Yellow?
Finding the right contour color should be the first lesson in Makeup 101. But when singer and actress Kelly Osbourne arrived at this 2012 Audi event, she looked yellow. Her makeup artist majorly failed on this job.
Perhaps the artist underestimated how harsh the lights would be on the red carpet, or maybe she had poor lighting while working on Osbourne. Either way, the result was disastrous. Poor Osbourne--she's posing as normal because she has no idea that she's yellow.
We Can't Tell If This Was An Accident Or Not
White powder can make or break a person's face. In this case, it breaks it. When actress Angelina Jolie arrived at the 2014 premiere of The Normal Heart, she had white powder sprinkled across her jaw, forehead, and chest.
The worst part is that, besides the white spots, her makeup looks great. It's as if the makeup artist finished Jolie's face, and thought, "this needs something else." Then she threw packets of white eyeshadow at Jolie.
When Glitter Looks Like Bruises
Singer-songwriter Courtney Love is famous for her grunge fashion. Perhaps her makeup at the 2010 Shockwaves NME Awards was supposed to reflect this. In reality, the glitter looks like two black eyes.
The bluish-black glitter is the same color as a bruise. Putting it underneath Love's eyes did her no favors, and her eyebrows are so thin that you can barely see them beyond the bangs. Also, we're pretty sure her lipstick is smeared. This is the definition of a makeup disaster.
Did Flour Explode In Her Face?
In 2003, actress Drew Barrymore surprised fans when she arrived at the UK premiere of Charlie's Angels 2: Full Throttle. The middle half of her face was covered in white powder. Few people can call this look attractive.
With her dark under-eye and thin eyebrows, the makeup looks ghastly, like Barrymore came back from the dead. Perhaps it was an accident when the white eyeshadow container exploded. Who knows what was going through the makeup artist's head?
Are His Eyes Okay?
Believe it or not, Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day does not have pink eye in both eyes. The makeup artist used red eyeliner on the bottom lid. It was not a smart choice because now both of his eyes look distressed.
The tear streak down his face does not help, either. If the eyeliner were all black, the streak could look more punk rock appropriate. But here, it looks like he's been crying instead of rocking.
Someone Used The Wrong Shade Of Foundation!
When the lights and cameras flash on the red carpet, people can see every shade in a celebrity's makeup. Foundation color is especially important during events like the American Music Awards, but Ariana Grande's makeup artist did not seem to grasp that.
The singer and actress had a much paler face than the rest of her body. It is noticeably off. Unfortunately, this is not an easy fix without redoing her entire face. Someone fire that artist!
Someone Fix That Smudging
In 2013, radio personality Claudia Winkleman walked into the GQ Men of the Year awards ceremony looking disheveled. Her bottom eyeliner smudged, and it does not appear intentional. It looks like she just woke up.
The neutral lipstick does not help. If this was supposed to be the "style," then the makeup artist did not try hard enough. It's almost like the artist gave up halfway through the makeup, and nobody bothered to style her hair.
Ke$ha Became A Supervillain
Like many pop stars, Ke$ha has tried some wild makeup looks. But in 2012, she revealed the new "Baby G" watch line design with this. Some fans loved it, while others were scratching their heads.
To us, that line across her face looks like a supervillain mask. Some red blush dots her cheekbones, but it is not blended. It just sits there. And her eyebrows disappear amongst the gold. Overall, it's just a strange, non-flattering look.
Eyelashes Or Spider Legs?
When people apply mascara incorrectly, it can look less like eyelashes and more like spider legs. But that is not the only thing wrong with Demi Lovato's makeup at FOX's 'The X Factor' finalists party. It is so poorly done that she doesn't even look like herself.
Her foundation is weirdly pale, except around her forehead, which is oddly dark. The light color washes out her face and nose, leaving nothing but spider leg eyelashes and red lipstick.
This Is Why People Should Blend Their Contour
Many people have bashed actress Lindsay Lohan for poor makeup before. During several events, her contour has not been blended well. The dark shades that sit on her cheeks do not look natural at all.
Contour is supposed to blend into the face so that it looks seamless. But because Lohan is pale, the contour sticks out noticeably. Her lack of lipstick does not help; her lips are the same skin tone as the rest of her face.
We Don't Know What's Happening Here
The Met Gala is known for celebrity's weird yet beautiful fashion choices. But during the 2013 Gala, actress January Jones just looked weird. The strange eyeliner placement entirely changed the shape of her eyes.
It might have worked had the rest of her makeup not looked so pale. She ended up looking like a ghoulish bird on the runway. Even so, it's not the worst makeup blunder we've seen, and many people forgave it because of the nature of the Met Gala.
Low Key Horrifying
Singer Christian Aguilera arrived at the VIVA Glam V after-party looking like...we're not sure. Her burgundy eyeshadow cuts off her forehead from the rest of her face. It's also blended into her temples, making her forehead look much darker.
The intense blush is not helping. Aguilera looks sunburned with all the red that's on her face. And we haven't even touched upon the thin eyebrows. This makeup look is everything that was wrong with early 2000s makeup.
Her Jaw Is A Different Color
At the 2013 Maxim Hot 100 Party, Miley Cyrus's makeup looked a bit off. The singer and actress had a completely different skin tone underneath her jaw. It appears white, which is even more pronounced because of her red lips.
We still aren't sure how this happened. It does not appear to be contouring, because who uses white for that? Was the makeup artist trying to accentuate the lips? Whatever the goal was, it did not work.
Bradley Cooper Has Two Different Skin Tones
At first glance, nothing seemed off about actor Bradley Cooper when he arrived at the premiere of Valentine's Day. But if you look closely, you'll notice that he has two different skin tones. His face appears much darker above his beard.
His makeup artist didn't match the foundation to his skin tone and did not blend it enough. When foundation is applied correctly, you won't even realize that someone is wearing it. That's not the case here.
Wearing Both Too Much And Not Enough Makeup
The 2003 Golden Globe Awards were not the best fashion moment for actress Sarah Jessica Parker. Somehow, her makeup made her wrinkles more pronounced and blended her eyes into the rest of her face.
If there's one word to describe this look, it would be "pale." Parker's eyes are not defined enough, and even the contour looks too light. Was the artist aiming for a corpse look? Or did they underestimate how light blue eyes and blonde hair are?
Light Under Eyes Are Worse Than Dark Under Eyes
Concealer is commonly used to cover up dark circles beneath the eyes. For some reason, actress Taraji P. Henson entered the 2009 Hollywood Awards Gala Ceremony with white concealer. It is way too pale and sticks out like a sore thumb.
Her makeup would have looked fine if not for that terrible concealer. Perhaps it looked fine in the makeup room, but underneath the bright lights, it became noticeable. And it was too late to fix.
Is Kerli An Alien?
Singer and songwriter Kerli is known for her strange makeup and fashion. But the 2013 Grammys was her worst look. Pink eyeshadow and winged eyeliner are classic, but the pink eyebrows and extra lines fit better in a fantasy movie than the red carpet.
Unlike other makeup looks, this one is well-done, but it does not fit the Grammys. Because her eyebrows vanish among the pink, the lines above her forehead seem like odd, artificial eyebrows.
Too Many Things Are Wrong Here
Singer Nicki Minaj has had some questionable makeup looks, but this is one of the worst. It's hard to tell what's wrong here. It's just--everything. The skin beneath her eyes looks too light, while her forehead and chin appear too dark.
Meanwhile, her eyebrows almost disappear in the foundation. And the bright pink lipstick, while classic, does not match her outfit. It looks like three different makeup artists worked on Minaj's face without collaborating with each other.
The Smokey Eye That Went Too Far
Actress and supermodel Tyra Banks has had hundreds of makeup looks throughout her career. But this artist went a little too far. What was supposed to be a smokey eye ended up covering all of her eyelids and almost all of her eyebrows.
Because Banks' eyebrows were not lined, they disappear beneath the black eyeshadow. There's a highlight right above her eyelid crease that looks out-of-place. Overall, her makeup artist did a questionable job here.
She's A Ghost!
Purple eyeshadow can work on some people, but you have to use the right shade and incorporate it into the rest of the makeup. This artist did neither. Actress and singer Leighton Meester ended up looking like a ghost.
This makeup would look a lot better if the purple were not underneath her eye too. The gold eyeliner is a nice touch, but it washes out Meester's eyes. Perhaps the makeup artist should have skipped out on the purple.
She Does Not Look Thrilled
When actress and model Paz de la Huerta arrived at the 2011 post-Emmy party, even fans didn't recognize her. Her lips were grey, she was overly tan, and little to no makeup outlined her eyes. She looked sick.
But she wasn't sick; Huerta just had a bad makeup artist. They were clearly trying to pull off a "natural" look, but it ended up looking like she just rolled out of bed. It is not great.
Gold Lipstick Was A Choice
In 2006, actress and model Sharon Stone made a strange choice with her makeup at the premiere of Basic Instinct 2. Gold lipstick is a good idea in theory, but it does not work on Stone. It washes her out.
Perhaps the gold lipstick was meant to match her hair. But while the color looks like on her eyes, it makes her lips disappear. It simply does not work with her skin tone. Better luck next premiere!
It Looks Like Weird War Paint
We have seen a lot of concealer mishaps, but one of the worst is Teresa Palmer's makeup for the Warm Bodies photocall. The powder is not only too bright, but it is also not blended at all. It looks like someone smeared baking powder beneath her eyes.
Because of her minimal eye makeup, Palmer's white streaks have no redemption. They would look purposeful if they did not also appear misshapen. It's like she put on strange war paint.
Some People Just Can't Do A Smokey Eye
Pulling off a smokey eye is notoriously difficult. In 2011, the artist who did Jodie Marsh's makeup did not succeed. The bodybuilder and model has worn such pretty makeup before, but here looks like a different person with this terrible smokey eye.
Smokey eyes usually blend into the crease, but that did not happen here. The black eyeshadow is an enormous blob around Marsh's eyes. Her bronzer also looks fairly orange against her skin. It must be a crime to do this to a model!
Someone Put Chalk On Nicole Kidman
Apparently, there is a makeup demon that possesses artists to put chalk all over an actress' face. That is the only thing that could explain Nicole Kidman's makeup at the 2009 premiere of Nine. Where did all that white come from?
It must be concealing powder that was not blended well. That would explain why chalky powder is all over Kidman's nose and cheekbones. Unfortunately, the paparazzi's camera lights can pick up any makeup discrepancies.
Her Tanner Went Too Far
When actress Charlize Theron accepted her Academy Award for Best Leading Actress, she did not look like herself. Her tan did not look natural, and it made her appear orange. And her makeup did nothing to help!
Theron's makeup artists clearly wanted to go for a "natural" look. But in this instance, a bolder eye might have worked in her favor. At least, it would have pulled attention away from her orange tan. That does not make for good Academy Award photos.
She Doesn't Have To Look Like A Vampire Anymore
In the movie Twilight, it makes sense for vampires to appear pale and have reddish eyes. But that is not appropriate for Kristen Stewart's appearance on the red carpet. And no, she's not at a Twilight premiere here; she's at a 2016 premiere for the movie Personal Shopper.
Makeup artists have to be extra careful when they line a person's eyes with red. It might look like their eyes are irritated. Fortunately, the redness still looks like eyeshadow, but against Stewart's pale skin it is disconcerting.
The Definition Of "Chalky"
Actress Melissa Joan Hart clearly wanted to appear like an ice queen at the premiere of Disney's Frozen. But she looked less icy and more chalky. Remnants of powder are all across her face, and the icy blue eyeshadow only dramatizes that.
Plenty of celebrities have achieved the "snow queen" look, but they need to go more blue than white. If the makeup artist had blended the white powder and used a more blue eyeshadow, this would have been great.
